by: Kerry Lippold Jr.
For college students across the country, the “most wonderful time of the year” happens to be one of the most conflicting and stressful times of the year. Having gone through an entire semester, a break away from school filled with family, food and relaxation seems like a necessity.
Motivation to study and finish out the semester is at an all-time low and with just days between you and break, there is one thing in your way; it’s finals week. Parkland has many of ways to ease the stresses of finals week including the one and only “Stress Less Week.” But how should you study in the last days leading up to finals?
In our previous editions of the Prospectus, you can find articles about finals preparation and the events you may have missed out on. Fortunately, depending on when you are reading this edition, there is still time.
Currently on Dec. 5, Thoughtful Thursday is taking place and, “…will consist of adult coloring, aroma therapy and another chance to get comforted by Sterling the comfort dog,” according to Parkland student, Lindsay Cox.
“Anything can help when it comes to getting a good grade on your finals to finish out the semester”
Also, Phi Theta Kappa Honor Society is offering adult coloring books for students from 11 a.m.– 1 p.m. If you are unsure about attending these events, stop in and see what they have to offer. Anything can help when it comes to getting a good grade on your finals to finish out the semester. Finishing off stress less week, we go into crunch time for finals.
There are many studying tips from trained psychologists and neuroscientists about the best studying habits for improving test scores. Some sources include psychological research from Emma Fazzino at the University of Melbourne and the recommendations of Queensland Brain Institute (QBI).
Both sources concluded that spaced out studying produces the best results. Unfortunately, we are only days away from finals week. However, finals will be taking place from Dec. 9-13, so odds are that all your finals are not on the same day. With the right plan, you should be able split up an eight-hour session of study into eight one-hour long sessions with breaks in between.
Next, you will want to minimize distractions. QBI cognitive neuroscientist Professor Jason Mattingley states, “The easiest and most obvious way we can help to focus our attention is by reducing the amount of distractions in our environment.” This seems to be especially difficult when it comes to cell phones. By placing your phone in your backpack or other location besides within arm’s reach, you can more effectively work.
Finally, the actual studying. One of the best ways to study in my opinion which was also agreed upon between our sources and proven by US research would be learn as though you were going to teach it. Whether you are teaching the topic to someone else or the mirror, learning out loud is a great way to study.
Other tactics suggested in the articles including mixing things up, using stories and accessing yourself. If you were attempting to become a better athlete and chose weightlifting as your training method, you would not train your arms alone for months until you were satisfied before moving onto the next part of the body. You would train each area of the body periodically as you should study a mixture of material while studying instead of focusing on one topic for long periods of time.
Using mnemonics, memory aids such as stories and acronyms, help strengthen neural pathways and cause you to recall material easier and quickly. By accessing yourself and asking, ‘What am I working towards? What have I learned? Is my method working?’ you are able to reflect and motivate yourself based on your answers to these questions.
If you would like more specific tips from professionals, visit the University of Melbourne website, or stop by Parkland’s Center for Academic Success to get help from peers, faulty, or advisors. It is better late than never when it comes to studying. Otherwise, good luck with finals and happy holidays!
